Coil separator



NOV. 14,1967 F KENNEDY ETAL '3,352,551

COIL s'L-'PARATOR Filed Nov. l2, 1965 /NVENTORS FRANK KENNEDY and EDWIN C. KLEIN A Homey United States Patent O 3,352,551 COIL SEPARATOR Frank Kennedy and Edwin C. Klein, Johnstown, Pa., assignors to United States Steel Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 12, 1965, Ser. No. 507,321 4 Claims. (Cl. 263-47) This invention relates to an improved separator for spacing and supporting coils of metal strip in an annealing furnace.

Conventional practice in annealing metal strip in coil form is to stack the coils, which may weigh several tons each, one on top of another in a covered annealing furnace. The furnace is heated to a suitable annealing temperature, while a specially prepared atmosphere is circulated around the coils. A fan at the bottom of the furnace draws the gases which make up the atmosphere downwardly through the eyes of the stacked coils. The gases then travel upwardly around the outside of the coils. Separators are placed between coils so that the upper coil does not rest directly on a coil below and to enable the gases to contact both the top and bottom of each coil.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved coil separator which avoids narrow supporting surfaces and thus aifords a more nearly uniform distribution of the weight load.

A further object is to provide a coil separator which has passageways of similar cross-sectional area for conducting gases to both the coil above and the coil below, thereby distributing heat more uniformly to the coils.

A further object is to provide a separator which offers the foregoing advantages, yet is of simple rugged construction and avoids welds in areas where there would be uneven heating and expansion.

In the drawing:

FIGURE l is a top plan view of our separator with parts broken away;

FIGURE 2 is a partial side elevational view of the separator on line II-II of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a vertical section on line III-III of FIG- URE 1.

Our separator has an annular bottom member formed of a plurality of spaced-apart straight-sided metal plates 10. The opposite sides of each plate are parallel with the sides of the two adjacent plates. We show plates of trapezoidal outline, but we could use plates of other straightsided configuration, such as sectors of a circle. The trapezoidal plates have the advantage that they can be cut readily from a single rectangular plate. We show a bottom member which has twelve plates spaced with the center line of each making 30 angles with the center lines of the two adjacent plates, but this relation may vary in different installations. We weld inverted openended radially extending channels 12 between each pair of plates 10, bridging the spaces between plates. We weld inverted outer peripheral channels 13 to plates 10 near the outer edges of the plates between the radial channels 12. We weld inverted intermediate radial channels 14 to the upper surfaces of plates 10. Channels 14 are shorter than channels 12 and extend from the middle of the respective peripheral channels 13 to points short of the inner edges of plates 10. Each channel 12, 13 and 14 is welded along both edges of both flanges to the respective plates 10, and the channels are welded yto one another where they abut. We also weld smaller trapezoidal plates 15 between the radial channels 12 at the ends of the intermediate channels 14 to reinforce the structure. The upper surfaces of channels 12, 13 and 14 are all in the same plane, while the upper surfaces of plates 15 are in a lower plane, as FIGURE 3 shows.

3,352,551 Patented Nov. 14, 1967 We place our separator on top of a lower coil C of strip metal in a conventional coil annealing furnace (not shown). The trapezoidal plates 10, which form ythe bottom member of the separator, rest on the top of the coil and afford a sufficiently large bearing surface that the load is not concentrated on any small area. We place an upper coil C1 on the separator. The upper coil rests on the webs of the inverted channels 12, 13 and 14 which likewise alford Ia sufficiently large bearing surface not to concentrate the load. In particular the peripheral channels 13 furnish a continuous support for the outer wraps of coil C1 throughout their circumference and thus prevent deformation of the coil.

The radial channels 12 afford passageways which conduct gases from their outer ends over the top of the bottom coil C to the central opening 16 of the separator. The outer flange of each peripheral channel 13 has a cutout 17 near the middle to serve as a gas inlet (FIG- URE 2). The inner ange of each channel 13 has two cutouts 18 and 19 at opposite sides of the radial channels 14 to serve as gas outlets. Gases which discharge through outlets 18 and 19 contact the bottom of the upper coil C1 throughout areas 20 and 21 respectively bounded by the radial channels 12 and 14 and peripheral channels 13. The spaces between the inner ends of channels 12 and 14 form throats 22 and 23 through which these gases discharge into the central opening 16 of the separator. The combined cross-sectional areas of each pair of throats 22 and 23 substantially equals the cross-sectional area 24 of the passageway through each radial channel 12. Each throat area consists of parts above and below plates 15, as FIGURE 3 shows. When we construct our separator, We regulate the throat area by choosing the proper length of channels 14. The longer the channels 14, the smaller the throat area. The areas 20 and 21 are oversize with respect to their inlets and outlets and thus provide spaces in which gas is entrapped. The entrapment enables the gas to percolate through the interstices formed by the wraps of the coil.

From the foregoing description it is seen that our invention affords a simple rugged separator for coils in an annealing furnace. The separator is particularly advantageous in providing uniform load distribution and uniform distribution of gases over the top and bottom of the coils.

While we have shown and described only a single embodiment of our invention, it is apparent that modifications may arise. Therefore, we do not wish to be limited to the disclosure set forth but only by the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A coil separator comprising an annular bottom member formed of a plurality of spaced-apart straightsided metal plates each having opposite sides parallel with the sides of the two adjacent plates, inverted openended radially extending channels between each pair of said plates welded thereto, inverted outer peripheral channels welded to the respective plates near the outer edges thereof and having inner and outer anges, and inverted intermediate radial channels welded to the respective plates and extending from the peripheral channel on each to a point spaced inwardly from the inner edge of the plate, said channels having Webs lying in the same plane to support a coil thereabove and distribute the weight load, said rst-named radial channels affording passageways to conduct gases over the top of a coil therebeneath, said peripheral channels having gas inlets in their outer anges and gas outlets in their inner ilanges at opposite sides of said second-named radial channels to enable gases to ilow into the areas bounded by said iirst and second-named radial channels and said peripheral channels to contact the bottom of the coil thereabove, said radial channels forming throats above the inner edge of each plate, the lthroats above each plate having a combined cross-sectional area substantially equal to that of the passageway through one of Said first-named radial channels.

2. A coil separator as defined in claim 1 further comprising reinforcing plates welded between said rstnamed radial channels above said first-named plates at the ends of said second-named radial channels.

3. A coil separator as dened in claim 1 in which said plates are trapezoidal in outline.

4. A coil separator as dened in claim 1 in which the areas of the surfaces bounded by said rst and secondnamed radial channels and said peripheral channels are 15 4 larger than said inlets and said throats to entrap gases and enable them to percolate through the wraps of a coil thereabove.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,580,283 12/1951 .Cone 2- 263-47 2,981,529 4/1961 Menough V 263-47 2,981,530 4/1961 Menough 263-.47 2,988,349 6/1961 Blackman etal. 7 266-5 X 3,069,148 12/1962 'Jacob v v 266-5 3,302,939 2/1967 Scharbrough 266--5 I. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner. R. S. ANNEAR, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A COIL SEPARATOR COMPRISING AN ANNULAR BOTTOM MEMBER FORMED OF A PLURALITY OF SPACED-APART STRAIGHTSIDED METAL PLATES EACH HAVING OPPOSITE SIDES PARALLEL WITH THE SIDES OF THE TWO ADJACENT PLATES, INVERTED OPENENDED RADIALLY EXTENDING CHANNELS BETWEEN EACH PAIR OF SAID PLATES WELDED THERETO, INVERTED OUTER PERIPHERAL CHANNELS WELDED TO THE RESPECTIVE PLATES NEAR THE OUTER EDGES THEREOF AND HAVING INNER AND OUTER FLANGES, AND INVERTED INTERMEDIATE RADIAL CHANNELS WELDED TO THE RESPECTIVE PLATES AND EXTENDING FROM THE PERIPHERAL CHANNEL ON EACH TO A POINT SPACED INWARDLY FROM THE INNER EDGE OF THE PLATE, SAID CHANNELS HAVING WEBS LYING IN THE SAME PLANE TO SUPPORT A COIL THEREABOVE AND DISTRIBUTE THE WEIGHT LOAD, SAID FIRST-NAMED RADIAL CHANNELS AFFORDING PASSAGEWAYS TO CONDUCT GASES OVER THE TOP OF A COIL THEREBENEATH, SAID PERIPHERAL CHANNELS HAVING GAS INLETS IN THEIR OUTER FLANGES AND GAS OUTLETS IN THEIR INNER FLANGES AT OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID SECOND-NAMED RADIAL CHANNELS TO ENABLE GASES TO FLOW INTO THE AREAS BOUNDED BY SAID FIRST AND SECOND-NAMED RADIAL CHANNELS AND SAID PERIPHERAL CHANNELS TO CONTACT THE BOTTOM OF THE COUL THEREABOVE, SAID RADIAL CHANNELS FORMING THROATS ABOVE THE INNER EDGE OF EACH PLATE, THE THROATS ABOVE EACH PLATE HAVING A COMBINED CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THAT OF THE PASSAGEWAY THROUGH ONE OF SAID FIRST-NAMED RADIAL CHANNELS. 